The problem the present invention addresses is automating the process by which tea latte is brewed and prepared.
Tea latte is a combination of tea and milk. Masala chai (Indian spiced chai-tea latte) comprises water, milk, loose tea, various spices and sweetener. Spices used to make chai tea may include ginger, cardamom, pepper, cinnamon, mint, lemon grass, cloves, star anise, fennel seeds, saffron, nutmeg, coriander, basil, licorice, rose, etc.
Tea latte is typically prepared through a manual process. It would be desirable to at least partially automate the process of preparing tea latte. The traditional manual preparation process for tea latte is a process whereby water and milk is boiled, either together or separately, and to which fresh tea leaves and spices are added. The tea is then allowed to brew by immersion for a selected period of time, after which the mixture is filtered and served.
The obvious problem of the traditional manual process of preparing tea latte is the effort and attention needed to brew good quality tea latte and to do it in a consistent and repeatable way. Additionally, cleaning required significant effort, as the vessels used are not specifically designed for brewing tea latte.
The current marketplace contains some devices that attempt to automate the process of creating tea latte. However these devices are almost always repurposed automated coffee brewing devices that have been repurposed in attempt to use them to brew tea latte.
Problems with current automated solutions to brew tea latte include but are not limited to the following:
(1) Current devices for brewing tea latte use flow-through brewing instead of immersion brewing, whereas immersion brewing is the optimal method for brewing tea-latte;
(2) Current devices do not include automated methods for frothing fresh milk and adding it to the tea-spice mixture;
(3) Current pod-based devices for brewing tea latte use dried milk powder not fresh milk;
(4) Current pod-based devices for brewing tea latte use instant tea instead of tea leaves;
(5) Current devices for brewing tea latte were originally designed for brewing coffee, which has different temperature and time requirement than those required for tea latte.
In addition, while there are several current automated solutions U.S. Pat. Nos. 9,107,533, 8,733,234, and 7,669,517 that address sub-components of the problem for heating and frothing milk they differ from and are less efficient than the present invention in several important ways.
U.S. Pat. No. 9,107,533 describes a standalone milk foamer with a magnetic frothing mechanism. A key different between U.S. Pat. No. 9,107,533 and the present invention is that the present invention uses a planar linkage instead of a protrusion linkage between the magnetic frothing drive mechanism and the frothing mechanism inside the carafe. This means that in U.S. Pat. No. 9,107,533 there is a hollow pin formed into the bottom of the carafe that must be aligned with a protrusion in the base of the frothing drive unit to properly function. This is because U.S. Pat. No. 9,107,533 relies on a diametric magnetic linkage to drive their frother, in which the frother driver fits within the inner diameter of the frother itself. Whereas in the present invention a planar magnetic linkage is utilized between frother and drive. Which means that there are no protrusions the need to be aligned for the frother to function properly. Rather a gross indexing feature consisting of a dish-shaped relief consisting of a slight ramp around the edges of the carafe is used to get the carafe closely enough aligned so that the magnets in the frother inside the carafe and the magnetic drive mechanism housed in the base can couple properly. The benefits of the method of the present invention is the operator does not need to align the carafe to the protrusion. It also allows a design that supports simply sliding or putting the carafe in place which the method of U.S. Pat. No. 9,107,533 does not support. Also the lack of protrusions in the present invention means the unit is easier to clean.
Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 9,107,533 describes a system where a cuff and stacked coil induction heater is utilized. This means that the carafe has to be lifted up and then dropped several inches into a recessed bucket for the induction heater to couple with the carafe properly. This contrasts with the present invention where the carafe is simply slid into place by the user and only drops down by itself a few millimeters into the shallow dish-shaped relief that the carafe sits in.
Not only do these two improvements provide a distinct benefit to the ease of use but they also improve the ability to clean the unit. In the present invention there are no large protrusions that have to be cleaned around or deep vertical walls. Rather the present invention with a shallow dish-shaped relief that the carafe sits in, is free from any major interruptions to the surface. This means that it is easy to wipe clean.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,733,234 describes a frother that uses steam to froth milk not a magnetic drive mechanism used by the present invention. Frother that use steam to froth milk usually require operator intervention, whereas the magnetic driven frother mechanism of the present invention is entirely automated.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,669,517 describes a frother with a vertical axis that is offset from the median vertical axis. In contrast the present mechanism utilizes a frother with a centered vertical axis. This centered vertical axis of the present invention, allows the present invention to optimally use an induction heater, which to some extent relies on concentricity of the fields produced and the target to be heated for optimal efficiency. Additionally, the present invention in one embodiment of the present invention, is therefore free from mechanical constraints that would otherwise require the intentional reduction of the height of the vortex created during the milk frothing process. Therefore, the present has less constraints on vortex height than the invention described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,669,517.
In summary, the problem of providing an automated device that automates the process of creating tea-latte in a way that mimics the quality and expertise of manual methods has not been solved. Thus, there is a need for a device that automates the process of creating high quality tea-latte in a repeatable way and makes cleaning and maintenance easier.